Nortiva Bio Launches as Clinical-Stage Company to Develop Long-Acting Oral Medicines Using LYNX™ Platform
Key Insights
Nortiva Bio launched as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing long-acting oral medicines using its proprietary LYNX™ (search) drug delivery platform, which can transform daily pills into single doses lasting up to one month.
The LYNX platform is supported by over a decade of research, including clinical proof of concept in multiple therapeutic areas, a successful Phase 3 study, and more than 270 individuals dosed across clinical trials.
Nortiva's lead development program is a once-monthly oral contraceptive backed by a $5 million grant from the Gates Foundation (search), addressing the unmet need of an estimated 50% of women who miss daily contraceptive doses at least once per month.
LEXINGTON, Mass. — Nortiva Bio, Inc. (search) announced its official launch on June 18, 2026, as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing long-acting oral medicines. The company's proprietary LYNX™ (search) drug delivery platform is designed to convert daily pills into single-dose oral therapies that last up to one month, with the potential to improve medication adherence, optimize efficacy and safety, and enhance patients' quality of life across multiple therapeutic areas.
Nortiva is a wholly owned subsidiary of Innoviva, Inc. (search) (NASDAQ: INVA), which acquired the LYNX platform from Lyndra Therapeutics, Inc. (search) in 2025. The platform is built on foundational science from the laboratories of Robert Langer and Gio Traverso at MIT and is supported by more than a decade of scientific, preclinical, and clinical research.
"Long-acting oral medicines have the potential to meaningfully reshape how patients manage their health and lead to better outcomes," said Austin Hackett, MD, President of Nortiva Bio. "The LYNX platform is built on innovative science and supported by robust clinical evidence. Our work now is to build on that foundation to revolutionize drug delivery by advancing our development programs and forming industry partnerships to bring multiple long-acting oral therapies to patients."
Pavel Raifeld, Chief Executive Officer of Innoviva, added: "The LYNX platform attracted us with its potential to address significant unmet medical needs. We are excited about Nortiva's ability to develop truly differentiated long-acting therapies that improve patients' lives and create value for partners."
How the LYNX™ (search) Platform Works
The LYNX drug delivery platform consists of a standard-size capsule containing an innovative structure that unfolds upon reaching the stomach, where it remains for the duration of the programmed drug delivery window. The platform delivers a stable dose of drug throughout that window, minimizing the peaks and troughs of drug concentration commonly associated with daily oral medicines. This steady-state delivery has the potential to reduce side effects caused by high drug concentration peaks and improve efficacy by preventing drug levels from dropping too low between doses.
LYNX is modular in design and can accommodate a wide range of small-molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) with varying potency, solubility, and molecular weight profiles. The platform is protected by more than 50 granted patents covering innovations in design, engineering, and materials science.
The clinical evidence base supporting LYNX includes more than 270 individuals dosed in clinical studies across multiple therapeutic areas and drug classes, nearly 600 total administrations in humans and more than 1,300 total administrations in animal trials, clinical proof of concept in multiple therapeutic areas, and a successful Phase 3 study.
Advisory Board of Industry Leaders
Nortiva has assembled an advisory board comprising prominent figures in drug delivery, medicines development, and pharmaceutical business strategy. The board includes Robert Langer, ScD, MIT Institute Professor and co-founder of more than 40 biotechnology companies including Moderna and Lyndra Therapeutics, who serves as Board Chair; Giovanni Traverso, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at MIT and gastroenterologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital; Janet Woodcock, MD, former Acting FDA Commissioner and Director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER); Jay Galeota, President and CEO of Kallyope and former Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer at Merck; Scott Braunstein, MD, Operating Partner at Aisling Capital and former CEO of Marinus Pharmaceuticals; and Sophie Kornowski, PharmD, MBA, former CEO of Boston Pharmaceuticals and former Global Head of Roche Partnering.
Development Pipeline and Partnership Strategy
Nortiva's strategy encompasses two complementary activities: advancing a proprietary lead development program and building a partnering pipeline with biotech and pharmaceutical companies.
The company's lead asset is a once-monthly oral contraceptive, being developed with the support of a $5 million grant from the Gates Foundation (search). The program builds on preclinical research demonstrating proof of concept for LYNX in steadily delivering contraceptive hormones to support once-monthly dosing. If successful, this could address a significant unmet need: an estimated 50% of women miss doses at least once per month, reducing contraceptive efficacy and complicating family planning logistics and education, particularly in low-resource communities.
"Our oral contraceptive program is both a mission-driven commitment to improving access to family planning worldwide and a powerful proof point for the LYNX platform," said Dr. Hackett. "We are proud to advance this work with support from the Gates Foundation (search)."
On the partnering front, Nortiva is actively engaging with biotech and pharmaceutical partners interested in developing long-acting oral versions of approved or development-stage small molecule therapies. For partners, LYNX offers the ability to convert a daily medicine into a once-monthly dose with potential improvements in safety, efficacy, and adherence.
"Long-acting oral dosing could significantly differentiate many marketed and pipeline drugs across multiple therapeutic areas," said Dr. Hackett. "With possibility of improving both clinical factors and patient satisfaction, the LYNX platform provides an opportunity to stand out in competitive indications."